View source for Siddha

{{Short description|One who is accomplished in Indian tradition}}
{{distinguish|Siddha medicine|Siddhar}}
{{Other uses}}
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{{italic title}}
{{EngvarB|date=March 2015}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2015}}
{{more citations needed|date=January 2016}}
[[File:Indian Adept (siddha) - Virupa 16 century Private coll..jpg|thumb|280px|The [[mahasiddha]] [[Virupa|Virūpa]], 16th century]]
'''''Siddha''''' ([[Sanskrit]]: {{lang|sa|सिद्ध}} ''{{transliteration|sa|siddha}}''; "perfected one") is a term that is used widely in [[Indian religions]] and culture. It means "one who is accomplished."{{sfnp|Watt|2020}} It refers to perfected masters who have achieved a high degree of perfection of the intellect as well as [[moksha|liberation]] or [[Enlightenment in Buddhism|enlightenment]]. In [[Jainism]], the term is used to refer to the liberated souls. ''Siddha'' may also refer to one who has attained a [[siddhi]], paranormal capabilities.

Siddhas may broadly refer to [[siddhar]]s, [[nath]]s, [[asceticism|ascetics]], [[sadhu]]s, or [[yogi]]s because they all practice [[sādhanā]].{{sfnp|Zimmermann|2003|p=4}}

==Jainism==
{{further|Siddhashila}}
{{Jainism}}
[[File:Siddha idol.jpg|upright|thumb|Although the ''siddhas'' (the liberated beings) are formless and without a body, this is how the Jain temples often depict them.]]
In Jainism, the term ''siddha'' is used to refer the liberated souls who have destroyed all [[Karma in Jainism|karmas]] and have obtained [[Moksha (Jainism)|moksha]].{{citation needed|date=June 2021}} They are free from the transmigratory cycle of birth and death (''[[Saṃsāra (Jainism)|saṃsāra]]'') and are above ''[[Arihant (Jainism)|Arihantas]]'' (omniscient beings). Siddhas do not have a body; they are soul in its purest form. They reside in the ''Siddhashila'', which is situated at the top of the Universe.{{sfnp|Buhler|2013}} They are formless and have no passions and therefore are free from all temptations. They do not have any karmas and they do not collect any new karmas.

According to Jains, siddhas have ''eight'' specific characteristics or [[Guṇa (Jainism)|qualities]]. Ancient [[Tamil language|Tamil]] Jain Classic 'Choodamani Nigandu' describes the eight characteristics in a poem, which is given below.{{sfnp|Srichandran|1981|p=18}}

{{blockquote|<poem>கடையிலா ஞானத்தோடு காட்சி வீரியமே இன்ப
மிடையுறு நாமமின்மை விதித்த கோத்திரங்களின்மை
அடைவிலா ஆயுஇன்மை அந்தராயங்கள் இன்மை
உடையவன் யாவன் மற்று இவ்வுலகினுக்கு இறைவனாமே</poem>

The soul that has infinite knowledge (Ananta jnāna, கடையிலா ஞானம்), infinite vision or wisdom (Ananta darshana, கடையிலா காட்சி), infinite power (Ananta labdhi, கடையிலா வீரியம்), infinite bliss (Ananta sukha, கடையிலா இன்பம்), without name (Akshaya sthiti, நாமமின்மை), without association to any caste (Being vitāraga, கோத்திரமின்மை), infinite life span (Being arupa, ஆயுள் இன்மை) and without any change (Aguruladhutaa, அழியா இயல்பு) is God.}}

The following table summarizes the eight supreme qualities of a liberated soul.{{sfnp|Devanandī|2014|p=5}}

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Quality !! Meaning !! Manifestation
|-
| Kśāyika samyaktva || infinite faith or belief in the tattvas or essential principles of reality  || manifested on the destruction of the faith-deluding (darśana mohanīya) karma
|-
| Kevala Jnāna || infinite knowledge  || on the destruction of the knowledge-obscuring (''jnānāvarnīya'') karma.
|-
| ''Kevaladarśana'' || infinite perception || on the destruction of the perception-obscuring (''darśanāvarnīya'') karma
|-
| ''Anantavīrya'' || infinite power || on the destruction of the obstructive (''antarāya'') karma
|-
| ''Sūksmatva'' || fineness  || manifested on the destruction of the life- determining (''āyuh'') karma
|-
| ''Avagāhan'' || inter-penetrability || manifested on the destruction of the name-determining (''nāma'') karma
|-
| ''Agurulaghutva'' || literally, neither heavy nor light || manifested on the destruction of the status-determining (gotra) karma
|-
| ''Avyābādha'' || undisturbed, infinite bliss || manifested on the destruction of the feeling-producing (vedanīya) karma
|}

Because of the quality of ''Sūksmatva'', the liberated soul is beyond sense-perception and its knowledge of the substances is direct, without the use of the senses and the mind. The quality of ''avagāhan'' means that the liberated soul does not hinder the existence of other such souls in the same space.

A soul after attaining siddhahood goes to the top of the [[Jain cosmology#Three lokas|loka (as per Jain cosmology)]] and stays there till infinity. Siddhas are formless and dwell in ''Siddhashila'' with the above-mentioned eight qualities.

==Hinduism==
{{Saivism}} 
In Hinduism, the first usage of the term siddha occurs in the ''Maitreya Upanishad'' in chapter Adhya III where the writer of the section declares "I am Siddha."{{citation needed|date=September 2023}}

===Siddhashrama===
{{Main|Siddhashrama}}
In Hindu theology, [[Siddhashrama]] is a secret land deep in the Himalayas, where great yogis, sadhus and [[Sage (philosophy)|sages]] who are siddhas live. The concept is similar to Tibetan mystical land of [[Shambhala]].

Siddhashrama is referred in many Indian epics and Puranas including [[Ramayana]] and [[Mahabharata]]. In Valmiki's Ramayana it is said that Viswamitra had his hermitage in Siddhashrama, the erstwhile hermitage of [[Vishnu]], when he appeared as the [[Vamana]] [[avatar]]. He takes Rama and Lakshmana to Siddhashrama to exterminate the [[rakshasa]]s who are disturbing his religious sacrifices (i.28.1-20).{{sfnp|Vyas|1992|p=40}}{{sfnp|Hanumanta Rao|1998}}

===Nath sampradaya===
{{Main|Nath|Mahasiddha}}
Whenever siddha is mentioned, the 84 siddhas and 9 nathas are remembered, and it is this tradition of siddha which is known as the Nath tradition. Siddha is a term used for both [[mahasiddha]]s and Naths So a siddha may mean a siddha, a mahasiddha or a nath. The three words are used interchangeably.

====In the Varna(na)ratnakara====
A list of eighty-four siddhas is found in a manuscript (manuscript no 48/34 of the Asiatic Society of Bengal) dated Lakshmana Samvat 388 (1506) of a medieval [[Maithili language|Maithili]] work, the [[Varna Ratnakara]] (devnagari: वर्ण-रत्नाकर) written by [[Jyotirishwar Thakur]], the court poet of King Harisimhadeva of Mithila (reigned 1300–1321). An interesting feature of this list is that the names of the most revered naths are incorporated in this list along with Buddhist siddhācāryas. The names of the siddhas found in this list are:{{sfnp|Dasgupta|1995|pp=203ff, 204}}{{sfnp|Haraprasad|2006|pp=xxxv-vi}}

{{columns-list|colwidth=18em|
# Minanātha
# Gorakshanātha
# Chauranginātha
# Chāmarinātha
# Tantipā
# Hālipā
# Kedāripā
# Dhongapā
# Dāripā
# [[Virupa|Virūpa]]
# Kapāli
# Kamāri
# Kānha
# [[Kanakhala]]
# [[Mekhala and Kanakhala|Mekhala]]
# Unmana
# Kāndali
# Dhovi
# Jālandhara
# Tongi
# Mavaha
# Nāgārjuna
# Dauli
# Bhishāla
# Achiti
# Champaka
# Dhentasa
# Bhumbhari
# Bākali
# Tuji
# Charpati
# Bhāde
# Chāndana
# Kāmari
# Karavat
# Dharmapāpatanga
# Bhadra
# Pātalibhadra
# Palihiha
# Bhānu
# Mina
# Nirdaya
# Savara
# Sānti
# Bhartrihari
# Bhishana
# Bhati
# Gaganapā
# Gamāra
# Menurā
# Kumāri
# Jivana
# Aghosādhava
# Girivara
# Siyāri
# Nāgavāli
# Bibhavat
# Sāranga
# Vivikadhaja
# Magaradhwaja
# Achita
# Bichita
# Nechaka
# Chātala
# Nāchana
# Bhilo
# Pāhila
# Pāsala
# Kamalakangāri
# Chipila
# Govinda
# Bhima
# Bhairava
# Bhadra
# Bhamari
# Bhurukuti
}}

====In the ''Hatha Yoga Pradipika''====
In the first ''upadeśa'' (chapter) of the ''[[Hatha Yoga Pradipika]]'', a 15th-century text, a list of yogis is found, who are described as the Mahasiddhas. This list has a number of names common with those found in the list of the ''Varna(na)ratnākara'':{{sfnp|Dasgupta|1995|pp=203ff, 204}}{{sfnp|Sinh|1914}}

{{columns-list|colwidth=18em|
# Ādinātha
# Matsyendra
# Śāvara
# Ānandabhairava
# Chaurangi
# Minanātha
# Gorakṣanātha
# Virupākṣa
# Bileśaya
# Manthāna
# Bhairava
# Siddhibuddha
# Kanthaḍi
# Koraṃṭaka
# Surānanda
# Siddhapāda
# Charpaṭi
# Kānerī
# Pūjyapāda
# Nityanātha
# Nirañjana
# Kapālī
# Bindunātha
# Kākachaṇḍīśvarā
# Allāma
# Prabhudeva
# Ghoḍā
# Chholī 
# Ṭiṃṭiṇi
# Bhānukī
# Nāradeva
# Khaṇḍakāpālika
}}

===Tamil tradition===
{{Main|Siddhar}}
{{TNhistory}}
In [[Tamil Nadu]], South India, a siddha (see ''[[siddhar]]'') refers to a being who has achieved a high degree of physical as well as spiritual perfection or enlightenment. The ultimate demonstration of this is that siddhas allegedly attained [[physical immortality]]. Thus siddha, like [[siddhar]], refers to a person who has realised the goal of a type of [[sadhana]] and become a perfected being. In Tamil Nadu, South India, where the siddha tradition is still practiced, special individuals are recognized as and called siddhas (or siddhars or cittars) who are on the path to that assumed perfection after they have taken special secret [[rasayana]]s to perfect their bodies, in order to be able to sustain prolonged meditation along with a form of [[pranayama]] which considerably reduces the number of breaths they take. Siddha were said to have special powers including flight. These eight powers are collectively known as attamasiddhigal (ashtasiddhi). In [[Hindu cosmology]], ''Siddhaloka'' is a subtle world (''[[loka]]'') where perfected beings (siddhas) take birth. They are endowed with the eight primary [[siddhi]]s at birth.

==Buddhism==
{{main|Mahasiddha}}
{{expand section|date=September 2023}}
The Svetasvatara (II.12) presupposes a siddha body.{{sfnp|Baruah|2000|p=156}}

== See also ==
{{columns-list|colwidth=25em|
* [[Kagapujandar]]
* [[Religion in ancient Tamil country]]
* [[Twilight language]]
}}

==Notes==
{{reflist|25em}}

==References==
* {{cite book |first=Bibhuti |last=Baruah |title=Buddhist Sects and Sectarianism |year=2000 |location=New Delhi |publisher=Sarup & Sons |isbn=9788176251525 |url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_s1PZAMD13SMC}}
* {{cite web |first1=Johann Georg |last1=Buhler |translator=Jas Burgess |editor=Jayaram V |title=Jainism Cosmology |url=http://www.hinduwebsite.com/jainism/jain-cosmology.asp |website=Hinduwebsite.com |year=2013 |access-date=2021-06-26}}
* {{cite book |last=Dasgupta |first=Sashibhusan |year=1995 |title=Obscure Religious Cults |publisher=Firma K.L.M. |location=Calcutta |isbn=81-7102-020-8}}
* {{cite book |author=Devanandī |title=Ācārya Pujyapada's ''Iṣṭopadeśa'' – the Golden Discourse |isbn=978-8190363969 |editor-last=Jain |editor-first=Vijay K. |translator=Vijay K. Jain |year=2014|publisher=Vikalp Printers }}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.valmikiramayan.net/bala/sarga29/bala_29_frame.htm |title=Valmiki Ramayana, Bala Kanda, Chapter 29 |last=Hanumanta Rao |first=Desiraju |year=1998 |website=Valmikiramayan.net |access-date=2009-10-21}}
* {{cite book |editor-first=Shastri |editor-last=Haraprasad |orig-year=1916 |edition=3rd |year=2006 |title=Hajar Bacharer Purano Bangala Bhasay Bauddhagan O Doha ''(in Bengali)'' |location=Kolkata |publisher=Vangiya Sahitya Parishad}}
* {{cite web |title=The 18 Siddhars |url=https://www.nhp.gov.in/the-18-siddhars_mtl#:~:text=%20The%2018%20Siddhars%20%201%201.Agathiyar.%20Agathiyar,9.%20Chattamuni.%20%206%2011.Ramadevar.%20%20More%20 |author=NHP Admin |date=October 21, 2015 |publisher=NHP CC DD |website=www.nhp.gov.in |access-date=2021-06-26 |archive-date=11 September 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210911061545/https://www.nhp.gov.in/the-18-siddhars_mtl#:~:text=%20The%2018%20Siddhars%20%201%201.Agathiyar.%20Agathiyar,9.%20Chattamuni.%20%206%2011.Ramadevar.%20%20More%20 |url-status=dead }}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.sacred-texts.com/hin/hyp/hyp03.htm |title=Hatha Yoga Pradipika, Chapter 1 |last=Sinh |first=Pancham (tr.) |year=1914 |website=sacred-texts.com |access-date=2009-11-12}}
* {{cite book |first=J. |last=Srichandran |year=1981 |title=ஜைன தத்துவமும் பஞ்ச பரமேஷ்டிகளும் |publisher=Vardhamanan Padhipakam |location=Chennai}}
* {{cite web |first=Jeff |last=Watt |title=Definition: Mahasiddha (Indian Adept) |url=http://www.himalayanart.org/search/set.cfm?setID=1028 |website=[[Himalayan Art Resources]] |date=October 2020 |access-date=2021-06-26}}
* {{cite book |editor-last=Vyas |editor-first=R.T. |title={{IAST|Vālmīki Rāmāyaṇa, Text as Constituted in its Critical Edition}} |year=1992 |publisher=Oriental Institute |location=Vadodara}}
* {{cite book |last=Zimmermann |first=Marion |title=A short introduction: The Tamil Siddhas and the Siddha medicine of Tamil Nadu |year=2003 |publisher=GRIN Verlag |isbn=978-3638187411}}

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* [http://www.palanitemples.com/english/18_siddhas_details.htm Details of 18 siddhas] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221025152339/http://www.palanitemples.com/english/18_siddhas_details.htm |date=25 October 2022 }}
* [http://www.nandhi.com Tamil siddha tradition]

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